Bush: Foley Conduct 'Disgusting'

President Renews Support For Speaker Hastert As Panel Investigates Page Scandal

(CBS/AP)  President Bush on Wednesday called ex-Rep. Mark Foley's approaches to House male pages "disgusting" and backed Speaker Dennis Hastert's efforts to learn how officials handled the problem.

Mr. Bush's remarks at a White House news conference came as Peggy Sampson, supervisor of the page program, was questioned before the House ethics committee. The panel is not only investigating Foley's inappropriate and sometimes salacious electronic messages to former pages, but whether House officials covered up Foley's come-ons.

Sampson would not comment to reporters after the more than two-hour closed session. The unique page program allows high schoolers, sponsored by their congressman, to attend classes in the congressional page school and work for legislators as errand-runners.

Asked about the scandal, Mr. Bush said, "This is disgusting behavior when a member of Congress betrays the trust of the Congress and the family that sent a young page to serve." And he defended Hastert, who said he first learned of the approaches in late September.

"I think the speaker's strong statements have made it clear to not only the party ... but to the country that he wants to find out the facts," Mr. Bush said. "Denny is very credible as far as I'm concerned. He's done a fine job as speaker."

Foley sent e-mails and instant messages, some of them sexually explicit, to male pages after they left the program.

A four-member investigative panel of the evenly divided ethics panel is sorting out conflicts — including whether Hastert's office learned of the Florida Republican's inappropriate conduct in 2002, 2003 or 2005. All those years were mentioned, depending on who is telling the story.

Kirk Fordham, Foley's one-time chief of staff, is scheduled for questioning Thursday before a House ethics committee investigative panel. He said he notified Hastert chief of staff Scott Palmer in 2002 or 2003 about Foley's inappropriate conduct, and that he subsequently learned that Palmer met with Foley.

An internal review released by Hastert's office on Sept. 30 says the first notice to Hastert's aides about Foley wasn't until the fall of 2005 — and it didn't come from Fordham.

Rather, the review said, it came from the office of Rep. Rodney Alexander, R-La., after the lawmaker learned of an overly friendly – but not sexually explicit — e-mail from the Florida Republican to a page from the congressman's state.

Palmer has publicly disputed Fordham's account. It was not clear when the ethics committee will question him.

The contradiction between the staff aides is almost outdone by Hastert's conflicts with statements by two members of his leadership team: Majority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, and the House Republican campaign chairman, Rep. Tom Reynolds, R-N.Y.

Longtime conservative leader Paul Weyrich said Tuesday that Hastert had assured him that Boehner was wrong when he said that he had told Hastert months ago about the page problem with Foley.

"As to Congressman Thomas M. Reynolds, the speaker said, 'If he had mentioned this problem to me, I surely would have taken notice,"' Weyrich said in an e-mailed account of a phone conversation with Hastert.

Weyrich quoted Hastert as saying that Reynolds often came to him with numerous requests to help incumbents in trouble. "The speaker said he signs off on the majority of requests and only listens with one ear because the requests are repetitive," Weyrich said.

"Did Reynolds during such a session drop the bombshell about Foley in the speaker's lap without the speaker's comprehending what was being told to him? 'That is possible but unlikely,' the speaker said. In any case, he has absolutely no recollection," Weyrich said.

Boehner's spokesman, Kevin Madden, said slightly different accounts were not surprising because the events took place four months ago.

A spokesman for Hastert had no comment. A Reynolds spokesman, L.D. Platt, said Hastert had already said he didn't recall the conversation.

But most people apparently believe top Republicans knew about Foley's conduct early on, according to a new CBS News/New York Times poll. Sixty-two percent said they think members of the House Republican leadership were aware of the messages before they became public.

A full 80 percent of Americans said the Foley matter should be taken seriously.

[drgoodwin12]

To searingtruth I applaud you for giving a coherent blog now if we can only get JaneMcGreeve to do the same.Our country is in the worst shape it has been in since the height of the cold war.I personally beleive that we need to enact tough campaign finace reform laws that prohibit corporations,lobbyist and the groups like moveon.org and swift boat.org from contributing.In addition let us place a cap of $500 per person on contributions and that all money collected be placed into a campaign trust where it can be divided equally.Both parties and I am a Democrat have for the most part abandoned their constituents to line their own pockets.It is time for a change and the establishment of a viable third party thattruly represents America.I apologize for my insult of you on another post.I am glad that you have spoken clearly and coherently here.Skip the Orwellian refrences and get to the point from here on as you have admirably and articlately posted here.

[searingtruth]

My fellow citizens, I must leave you for awhile. We are in a crunch to get our website up and I must devote my time towards that goal for a few days.

But before I leave, I would like to address all those, on all sides, who have participated in this forum.

I believe that most everyone here is an American, and most everyone, at least deep inside, still believes in our traditional American values of truth, justice, and freedom for all. But I also know that some have been woefully misled and betrayed by those they entrusted most.

The Foley cover-up is just a small symptom of a government gone mad, and a country gone awry. I have said that "History is replete with examples of its own iteration", and we are indeed witnessing that today. It is no longer just the far left or conspiracy theorists who are crying out that our freedom has been usurped, it is almost everyone in America who is politically aware, and not on the side of those who usurped it.

My friends, do not let 225 years of American freedom die, without even a whimper. Do not repeat the mistake that so many other free societies have. Do not surrender your liberty in cause of fear. Instead, stand, as generations of Americans have before you, and demand your liberty, in cause of America.

Her future is in your hands.

Your fellow citizen, and friend,
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave - www.searingtruth.com

[searingtruth]

"Huskerarmy and Searing Truth, yes and yes. But what are we going to do about Congress' inability to get anything done."
bellaL

We are going to elect an all Democratic Congress to restore our Constitutional Republic and bring justice to those who have betrayed America, and then continue on as we always have. Don%u2019t worry; they will get a lot done, for America.
ST

"The telescreen received and transmitted simultaneously. Any sound that Winston made, above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked up by it; moreover, so long as he remained within the field of vision which the metal plaque commanded, he could be seen as well as heard. There was of course no way of knowing whether you were being watched at any given moment. How often, or on what system, the Thought Police plugged in on any individual wire was guesswork. It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time. But at any rate they could plug in your wire whenever they wanted to. You had to live - did live, from habit that became instinct - in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and except in darkness, every movement scrutinised."
George Orwell, 1984

"I wanted only a freedom for all that I had coveted for myself."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave %u2013 www.searingtruth.com

[bellal-2009]

Huskerarmy and Searing Truth, yes and yes. But what are we going to do about Congress' inability to get anything done.

[searingtruth]

%u2026 You put all these characters in a sack. %u2026
mjv2944

Up until about fifteen years ago I would have agreed with you mjv2944. I am a non-partisan voter and have never held either party in high regard. But about fifteen years ago I began to notice a pronounced authoritarian streak rising within the Republican Party. And then five years ago the Republicans made it very clear that they were not the same as the Democrats. They made it very clear that they wished to abolish the Constitution of the United States of America, and they did.

That makes them very, very, different than the Democratic Party. It was heartbreaking watching Keith Olbermann last night hold up the Bill of Rights and cross out nine of the ten rights we once had that the Republicans had abolished. Truly heartbreaking.

It is critical that every American vote strictly Democratic this year, because despite their faults, the Democrats are Americans and believe in our Constitution. They will work to immediately restore our Constitutional Republic, and bring those who have attempted to subvert it to justice.

Until then, any American citizen may now file a petition for the impeachment of Dictator Bush by going to http://www.impeachforpeace.org/ and mailing in their own DIY Impeachment Petition. Many, many, thousands are scheduled to be sent in tomorrow, October 12.
ST

"In a world of universal deceit, telling the truth is revolutionary."
George Orwell, 1984

[mjv2944]

I would have to say that the whole congress and the Dubya administration is "disgusting". None have a single thing to be proud of and their records prove it. My you know there's a lot of scrambling going on in the "Corruptway". These characters have lived the lies for so long that they believe them. Time to start making real changes. You put all these characters in a sack, skake it around, pour it on the ground, and they all come out looking and talking the same.

[searingtruth]

"SharnCedar and SearingTruth ... Because if we had to depend on Congress to respond we'd all be dead."
bellaL

Wow.

Let me just say that again.

Wow.

Here is the truth of the Republican Party fellow citizens, screaming loudly and proudly for all to hear and see.

For 225 years it was our Constitutional form of government that made us the great, respected, powerful, and noble nation that we were.

In less than six years Republicans have reduced us to just another simple police state. And listen very carefully to what they say, because they sincerely believe it. They believe that Congress is a worthless, useless entity that must be abolished, or at least completely ignored. They believe that only one branch of government is necessary, the executive branch. Governments that consist of only one all powerful executive branch are called dictatorships. And that is what Republicans have given us, America%u2019s first dictatorship.

Any political party that subverts the Constitution of the United States, attempting to concentrate all power in the hands of the President, has committed treason against the United States of America.
ST

"Republicans are in a unique historical position. They are the first group of people raised on this land, who call themselves Americans, that openly proclaim the virtues of torture, secret prisons, extrajudicial abduction, universal surveillance, and dictatorial government."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave %u2013 www.searingtruth.com

[huskerarmy]

"THat's just it, EVERYTHING has to be investigated. And who plays the price for all this political posturing."

We should seriously hope that this doesn't come anywhere near the price tag spent on the Clinton/Lewensky affair.

[grannysue1]

Ethics and Congress, isn't that an oxymoran? These people have no ethics that's why our country is in the shape it's in, that's why the middle class is being done away with, that's why the victims of Katrina were left to drown, starve and fend for themselves, that's why we still have several people that are probably going to jail in the Cunningham and Abranoff debacle. That's why we still have our military being killed and maimed in an unjust WAR, that's why we have no secure borders or ports, hell Bush wanted to sell the ports to the Saudi's! That's why the "no child left behind", has pretty much left most of them behind, that's why two months before the election, low and behold the gas prices came down! That's why we have these creeps hitting on young boys and the others covering up for him. I say one term period for any of them. Let's have a bill passed that says the American public funds the campaigns, which means $2.00 a month out of everyone's check for an election pool, the media must allow for a certain number of debates "free" for the good of America. Take the money and lobbyist out of politics and bingo, your going to get people who really want to be in office that are more interested in why they are being elected instead of how long they can remain in office at any cost! Apparently we need an exorcisim in d.C. and it can't be too soon! Grannysue

[bellal-2009]

Bizzybirdie, best idea I've ever heard.

[bellal-2009]

annabanana1, but the system is still so clogged and obstructed it's mindboggling. THat's just it, EVERYTHING has to be investigated. And who plays the price for all this political posturing.

[bizzybirdy]

And...the sad fact is, even if/when these crooked, sleazy dorks resign or leave office we are STILL paying their salaries! How about we vote to stop that and let them collect social security like the rest of us poor souls.

[annabanana-1]

Congress has not been functioning properly because the Administration DOES NOT WANT it to function properly. Having one party control over both the White House and Congress gives the people in power a blank check to operate as they see fit and encourages them to avert their eyes to the misdeeds of their colleagues.

The Ethics Committee has an even number of Republicans and Democrats. When the possibility of an investigation came before it they would vote on whether or not to go forward with the investigation. A tie meant "Yes, we will investigate". When Tom DeLay was getting in trouble, the House Republicans changed the rule so that a tie meant, "No we will NOT investigate".

If we want Congress to act on behalf of anyone besides the Administration, a change of leadership is necessary.

[bellal-2009]

huskerarmy,Yea, really, good point. The point I was trying to make but not very well is that if we actually were threatened and had to depend on congress we'd be dead by the time they figured it out. The slovenly bunch, they're lamer than lame. And having a Democrat dominant congress isn't going to solve the problem either.

[huskerarmy]

"...Because if we had to depend on Congress to respond we'd all be dead."

...From the mighty Iraqi army?

[cathaleen]

Who could possibly ethical enough in DC to be on this committee? Now, that's a good one. That'll be like "the pot calling the kettle black".

[bellal-2009]

SharnCedar and SearingTruth, I enjoy reading both of your comments and it seems as thought you're on the same page on some issues. But here's a question that I think goes to the heart of our democracy. President Bush was given full authority by Congress in the war resolution which granted a clear and unobstructed path to respond to any threats to the US. (or something like that). Ok. Now why was that necessary? My answer: Because if we had to depend on Congress to respond we'd all be dead.

[mjv2944]

ETHICS, now thats a word they only use in congress, they sure as heck don't implement it. I got dog that has more ethics than that whole lot in congress. You watch, they are scrambling to cover theit collective as*es.

[exusmcsgt]

I notice that Hastert did not say "including myself" in his pledge to dismiss anyone who failed to act responsibly. I smell a sacrificial lamb being led to the altar.......

[mjv2944]

Being from Illinois, we have a long line of Hasterts, including our former gov. George Ryan, who was recently convicted. Now is the time to vote out all these incumbents, dems and repub alike, and tell the new guys, we'll do the same to them if they don't clean the Beltway, now renamed the "Corruptway".